


Keep Running

by ourfreewill



Series: 9-1-1 Lone Star Season Two [2]
Category: 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt, Episode: s02e02 2100, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-01
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-12 19:07:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29140503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ourfreewill/pseuds/ourfreewill
Summary: Keep running. Keep running. Keep running.Mateo’s never run this far before, the high rises of the city becoming a distant backdrop to the pain that’s playing on his mind. Cars align the street guiding him to his next destination of nowhere. He needs to be anywhere but at home. Going home he would be alone and left with his thoughts and Mateo would have nothing to but surrender to the horrific images of the day.Dusk is falling all around him, luring him into tiredness and fatigue but he can’t give in. He can’t. He won’t.Keep running. Keep running. Keep running.
Series: 9-1-1 Lone Star Season Two [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2156265
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14





	Keep Running

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to do something a little different and thought it would be a challenge to try and write of the other characters.
> 
> I have a lot of unresolved issues with grief, so this took a lot out of me. But I kinda like what I wrote so yeah. I think it probably makes sense...

_ Keep running. Keep running. Keep running. _

Mateo’s never run this far before, the high rises of the city becoming a distant backdrop to the pain that’s playing on his mind. Cars align the street guiding him to his next destination of nowhere. He needs to be anywhere but at home. Going home he would be alone and left with his thoughts and Mateo would have nothing to but surrender to the horrific images of the day.

Dusk is falling all around him, luring him into tiredness and fatigue but he can’t give in. He can’t. He won’t. 

_ Keep running. Keep running. Keep running. _

A breath is knocked out of him by another memory and he inhales a gasping breath as he approaches the road’s next steep incline, but it’s not enough as he’s hit with another memory that forces him to expel the air. His ribs hurt, cracking trying to burst through his skin as he gathers air into his lungs to breathe through the pain.

_ “It was a freak accident.” _

_ “There wasn't enough of him left to work on…” _

No amount of exertion satisfies him. He can’t stop running, otherwise, his mind drifts too easily to…

_ Keep running. Keep running. Keep running. _

Mateo wishes he was still on shift and had finished the eleven hours they had left, just so he could focus on something.

_ “We should've stayed.” _

_ “Why did we leave him there?” _

The memories that taint his eyelids, every blink bringing forth haunting faces and his ears hear shrill cries.

_ Keep running. Keep running. Keep running. _

_ Keep running. Keep running. Keep running. _

_ Keep running. Keep running. Keep running. _

He can’t outrun the pit in his stomach as he thinks about the lost member of the 126. Turning the corner of the street he abruptly stops before a church. Staring up at it as more memories assault his mind.

They don’t stop. He’s trying to grab more air, his lungs and throat burning as he gasps for air, he walks over to the steps, sitting down, leaning over to put his head between his knees. It hurts to breathe. Breathing out harshly, trying to alleviate and push out any and all feelings he has. It’s not working.

Tim had known him before Captain Strand gave him his last hope, helping him pass his exam. The paramedic had been nice to him, not looking at him as a waste of space like the others had, or at least like he thought they had. They hadn’t had much contact before the reopening of the firehouse, but he appreciated it and noticed it… The firehouse was a family and he had learnt Tim’s quirks, humour, and joy. And now it was all gone.

_ Don’t think about it. Keep running. Keep running. Keep running. _

Keep running away from the anguish he’s feeling until his legs give out, or he passes out.

_ Keep running. Keep running. Keep running… _

**Author's Note:**

> [tumblr](https://ourfreewillfanfic.tumblr.com/)


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